


Of the Time

by TheObsoleteOne



Category: Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, I'm Sorry, M/M, Period Typical Bigotry, Protective Peter Parker, Superfamily, Superhusbands, Trans Character, Trans Female Character, Transphobia
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-29
Updated: 2020-07-02
Packaged: 2020-07-24 22:55:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20022370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheObsoleteOne/pseuds/TheObsoleteOne
Summary: Peter and MJ have been happily dating for over a year with Tony and Steve's complete support. But what happens when Steve discovers that MJ is trans? Will his reaction ruin his relationship with his family forever?





	1. Chapter 1

When Maria Hill made an offhanded comment about running a background check on his son Peter’s new girlfriend, Steve had laughed it off as the joke it was and promptly pushed the idea out of his mind. He and Tony tried their best to raise Peter with normalcy – as much as was possible when two superheroes raised their own mini superhero – and using connections to intrude on their teenage son’s equally teenage girlfriend seemed so far from normal it was ridiculous.

Steve had met the young lady, MJ, and approved greatly of her. She was smart, hardworking and accepted Peter as he was. What more could any parents ask for? Of course Steve was concerned that the relationship could end badly and hurt Peter, but that was a normal parental concern. Tony had helped him accept the idea of Peter being in a relationship, and now that the teens were nearing 18 he had less moments of worry for his son.

Now, Steve did have some old school habits that he was working hard to break. When Peter asked if MJ could spend the night at the tower for the first time, he had balked.

“I know that teenagers can get carried away when hormones are involved.” He had said sternly, refusing the request immediately.

“Pop!” Peter’s face was red with embarrassment.

“Come on Steve, they have been together for more than a year. I doubt that they haven’t already gotten _carried away_ as you put it.” Now it was his turn to blush as Tony spoke.

“Have you, Peter?”

“Oh my god I am not having this conversation right now!” Peter moaned, holding his face in his hands in denial.

“I guess we never did have the talk, did we? So first – protection is a no brainer, and using lube is not something to be ashamed of, so go mad if you want…”

“Dad!”

“Tony!”

The man in question laughed at the twin looks of embarrassment on his husband and kid’s faces. “Careful Peter, you are starting to sound like you are from the 40’s as well.”

“I just don’t want to have this conversation with my parents!”

“Fair enough Pete.” Steve wanted this to be over as well. “MJ can stay over tonight, sorry that I overreacted about it.” He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

“No harm done, Pops. Just please don’t mention any of this to MJ – both of you.” Peter said with a pointed look at Tony who raised his hands in a defensive gesture.

“Scout’s honour, I would never knowingly embarrass you or your girlfriend.”

All things considered, Steve felt comfortable with how his son’s relationship progressed and was secure in the knowledge that he was dating someone good for him. All of these thoughts were far from his mind as he got home from a mission debrief with Fury and stumbled across a quiet but urgent conversation between Peter and Tony. Steve was walking through the hallway towards the living space when he heard them speaking in low tones. He paused outside, about to announce his presence out of courtesy when he caught some of the conversation.

“How much is her bail?”

“Only about $5,000 dad.”

“Why aren’t her parents paying it off?” Tony sounded rightfully skeptical. Even with Steve’s hearing he missed the whispered reply from Peter. Whatever it was, it must have been convincing as Tony completely changed his tone.

“Alright. To avoid a spectacle for both of you I will get Pepper to arrange for it to be paid, we can make it look like it was a family member.”

“Thank you so much dad.” Peter sounded close to tears.

“Not an issue. I am going to have a chat with MJ though – she needs to be safer and smarter with this stuff.”

“I know, I think she just panicked.”

Steve’s mind raced as he thought through all of the possibilities. Was MJ excessively drinking? Doing drugs? Whatever it was she had gotten in trouble for it and was making Peter bail her out. Like hell was Steve going to allow this girl to take Peter down a dark path. The super soldier made himself scarce, and then walked back down the hallway with much louder footsteps than he had originally. As expected, by the time he rounded the corner into the living room, his husband and son were no longer talking quietly to each other.

“Hey pops! Hope you had a good day, mine was great! See you later!” Peter rushed out, waving goodbye as he did. _Why does he not want to talk to me about this?_ Steve worried to himself as his son left, managing a halfhearted wave back.

“You heard, didn’t you?” Tony sighed once Peter was in the elevator. The billionaire dragged a hand down his face, looking weary.

“Of course I did. What the hell is going on?” Steve demanded.

“Language.” Tony rebutted weakly. “I can’t tell you. I promised Peter, and you know how important it is for us to keep our promises to him.”

“Not if they will hurt him!”

“This won’t hurt him.”

“His girlfriend got arrested! Why are you accepting this so easily? She is obviously a bad influence.” Steve was getting worked up but could not stop himself. So many years of raising Peter and watching him grow into a wonderful human, only for a bad influence to ruin his child would destroy him.

“You do not know the full story Steve. Not everything is black and white, and in this case I do not think she is dangerous for Peter.”

“Well give me the context, please!” Steve had never considered himself an overprotective parent before, but he understood the concept now.

“I cannot. Just trust me, I would never allow anything to hurt Peter. He will tell you when he wants to.” Steve took a deep breath and counted to 10.

“Fine. I trust you. I love you.”

“I love you too Steve.”

“Sorry for getting upset, I panicked.” Internally Steve was still panicking; he resolved to do some investigating of his own.

“It’s fine, I understand.” Another sigh and Tony stood to press a kiss to his husband’s lips, considering the conversation finished.

Entering SHIELD the following day, Steve strode directly to Maria.

“You have Peter under surveillance, correct?” The agent seemed startled at his approach.

“SHIELD monitors all family members of operatives as a wellbeing measure –“

“Do you?” Steve interrupted her well practiced statement.

“Yes, of course.”

“Run a check on his girlfriend, MJ. I want full details, criminal history and the like.” Steve imagined that the blank look on Maria’s face was a testament to her training.

“Consider it done.” She knew not to argue with his Captain America voice.

“Thank you.” Steve nodded and left to get out his energy in the gym provided. He felt satisfied at taking action – if the arrest was over something small then it was no big deal, people made mistakes. However he would not be able to live with himself if it was something serious and he had not tried to intervene. A part of him smarted at Peter going to Tony instead of him for help, which also drove his desire to find information.

It was only a few hours later when Maria Hill came holding a small stack of paperwork. He stopped jogging on the treadmill and hopped off, not even sweating yet.

“That it?” He asked.

“Yes. Not much to compile.” Maria paused and looked at the papers then back to Steve before continuing. “Just – be easy on the girl?” before Steve could ask for clarification she handed him the paperwork and walked of.

Shaking his head in confusion, Steve made his way to a bench and sat down to read. It took a grand total of 30 seconds to read something that made his heart drop to his stomach.

He needed to speak with MJ.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING FOR TRANSPHOBIC IDEAS AND WORDS!
> 
> I promise this fic is not made to make Cap into a bad guy, I completely promise. Some of this is coming from my own personal experience but I do not mean to upset or hurt anyone. If this is something that might be too much for you please do not read.
> 
> Thank you

Steve went home to the tower first, unsure who to speak with first out of his husband and his son. He doubted either of them knew MJ’s full story and he was not going to allow them to be misled more than they had already. As always the living area was where he went first, but to his surprise the person in question was there instead. Alone.

“Hi Steve.” MJ smiled slightly and waved, looking exhausted. For a brief moment Steve felt bad for her, then his heart hardened when he remembered the truth.

“Where are Tony and Peter?” he asked as casually as he could, looking around the room and finding it empty save for the two of them.

“They needed to talk about something in the lab.” MJ could sense the tension apparently, “I wanted to say thank you for helping me today, I know it was a lot to ask but I am grateful –“

“I’m sure you are.” Steve let out a mocking laugh. “Quit it, I know the truth. Marcus.” He spat out her birth name like it was a curse. MJ’s eyes widened in shock.

“How did you know?” She whispered.

“Ran a background check – sloppy work Marcus, you have not even changed your name legally.” He rolled his eyes. MJ mouth tried to form words unsuccessfully, eyes still impossibly wide. _She is a good actor_. Steve thought bitterly. “What? Nothing to say?”

“I can’t change my name yet.” Was all MJ could get out.

“So what’s all this about? Did Peter reject your advances so you thought you would trick him by pretending to be a girl?”

“No, that’s not what this is.” MJ shook her head, tears welling over and spilling out.

“Are you one of those sickos that gets off on tricking people into thinking you are a woman?” The accusations were coming out of Steve’s mouth automatically.

“N-no. I _am_ a woman.” The declaration came out shakier than MJ intended. In her defense, she had never been face to face with an angry Cap before. He loomed over her in height and stature and she had a momentary thought for how his enemies on the battlefield would have felt.

“I can explain, please.” She begged as he stalked closer to her.

“I’m sure you think you can. What sort of con are you pulling on my son? On my family? Are you trying to humiliate him? Are you working for another company that wants to discredit Stark Industries by revealing his son dated a tranny? Tell me!” The Soldier grabbed hold of MJ’s upper arms and lifted her off the ground, pushing her against the wall, which she hit with a soft cry. Looking at his face there was no kind Steve to be found. He looked almost crazed.

“I am transitioning.” She squeaked out, scared beyond belief.

“What do you mean by that?” he snarled. The term rang a bell in his head but he could not remember what it meant these days.

“I was b-born a male but I am a woman. I am transitioning into myself, a woman.” MJ explained. There was no understanding on Steve’s face, if anything he scowled more.

“Are you so afraid of being a gay man that you have to pretend to be a woman to be ok with it?” Even Steve was able to come to terms with being in a relationship with another man, and he was from the forties!

“Or perhaps it was my original thought, that Peter rejected you as a man so you needed to con him into dating you somehow. And now you have gone and gotten arrested because you were trying to steal drugs! I will be damned if you bring my son down to your levels of depravity!” MJ cried out in pain as he tightened his hold on her arms once more.

“It’s not like that at all! Please let me go!” She was sobbing loudly now, scared beyond reason. The young girl closed her eyes in fear, only for the pressure on her arms to be pulled away abruptly. She expected to hit the floor painfully, but was caught by a familiar pair of strong, lean arms instead.

“Peter.” She whispered, burying her head in his chest and hiccupping through her tears. His arms tightened around her but he remained silent. Suddenly MJ was scared again, what if Peter did not want her to stay anymore? She gathered her courage and opened her eyes, but Peter was not looking at her – he was looking to the other side of the room. He looked angrier than she had ever seen him. MJ followed his gaze and gasped at the sight – Steve was webbed up on the opposite wall and Tony stood between him and them, Iron Man suit on and repulsors ready. They were not aimed at her though, they were aimed at Steve.

“Tony – what are you doing?” Steve struggled in place, “You don’t know who he is!” He yelled out. MJ flinched, causing the arms around her to tighten even more.

“Steve – shut up.” Tony’s voice was low and furious. “You know where to take MJ?” He threw over his shoulder to Peter.

“Yes dad. I will take her there now. No contact, please.” Peter replied. He placed MJ on the ground and turned to the window.

“Peter, what are you doing?” MJ asked fearfully.

“Just trust me babe, get on my back.” He tried to smile at her but it was more of a grimace. MJ hesitated momentarily but heard Steve starting to talk again and clambered on her boyfriend’s back. With a grace that still impressed her Peter crawled out of the window and shot of a web, swinging them off into the city.

MJ was completely overwhelmed so kept her eyes closed and desperately tried to stop crying to no avail. She had no notion of the passage of time but eventually the feeling of swinging stopped and Peter was back to crawling – probably up a building. It was not until her boyfriend coaxed her off his back that MJ opened her eyes. A quick look at her surroundings showed that they were in a well-appointed apartment of some kind.

One look at Peter’s angry face and MJ felt the dam inside her break again. “I am so sorry Peter! This would not have happened if I hadn’t been so stupid with the hormones! Now your dad thinks I am a freak and that I am using you, but I promise I am not! I promise!”

“Shhh. Shhh babe.” Peter drew her into his arms and let her cry on his shoulder. “You do not need to be sorry. What did Pop say to you?”

“He said that I must have been gay and you rejected me so I pretended to be a woman to get another chance which I p-promise is not the case, you know it isn’t don’t you? I love you. He did not believe me when I said I was a woman, he knows my legal name and accused me of spying on you all for another company and then said I was going to humiliate you by exposing that you dated me. He called me a tranny.” Her explanation was barely legible, she was crying so hard, but Peter understood.

For a moment, he said nothing. Just kept a tight hold on MJ and let her cry as much as she needed to. When her sobs had quietened down he spoke up. “You have done nothing wrong. I am so sorry Pop said that stuff to you, it was wrong and out of line. You know that you have not tricked me into anything? You are my girlfriend, plain and simple, no matter what name or gender was given to you at birth. I love you. I am also so mad at my Pop right now that I can barely think straight, so I took us here to have a breather.

“Does Tony hate me too?” MJ asked in a small voice. Peter wanted to reassure her that _Steve_ did not hate her but he was not completely sure it was the truth right now.

“No he doesn’t. We were actually talking about helping you with your hormone therapy until you were able to provide it for yourself comfortably. I am pretty sure dad was happy to foot the bill forever.”

“That’s incredibly nice of him.” MJ cautiously smiled, then yawned massively. Peter giggled at the adorable face she made, causing her to lightly slap his chest in rebuke.

“Crying takes it out of a person.” She defended, but still smiled which he considered a win.

“Of course. How about a small nap?” Peter was already leading his girlfriend to the bedroom.

“Fine.” MJ rolled her eyes good naturedly.

“Are you comfortable changing shirts with me here? I have spare sleep shirts which will be much more comfortable.” He knew that sometimes she felt too self-conscious to do so and completely expected that to be the case after the day she had just had. It was a surprise when she shook her head.

“My arms are too sore to take this one off.” She explained.

“That’s alright. Raise your arms as much as you can.”

MJ did, getting them to shoulder height before stopping. With Peter’s assistance she wriggled out of her shirt and put her arms back at her side. When Peter caught sight of the dark bruising on her arms his jaw clenched in anger. To distract himself from thinking about it, he got one of his soft Avengers tees and helped MJ put it on. She kicked off her pants herself, exposing her lean legs which he could not stop himself from staring at. Of course she noticed and gave a knowing wink, before getting under the covers and patting the spot next to her in encouragement for him to join. He did so quickly, gathering her into a cuddle.

“I am sorry about Pop. I never imagined he would do this to you.” He whispered, his own voice choking up with tears.

“You can’t blame yourself for what he said.” MJ replied. It was an uneasy sleep that the two fell into, their minds too focused on the very real and unpleasant events of the day.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW for Transphobic attitudes and language!

“What the fuck have you done Steve?” Tony had retracted his faceplate once Peter and MJ had left the building and was pinning his husband in place with a cold stare.

“Didn’t you hear me Tony – our son is being tricked by that _man_!” Steve spat out the last word in disgust.

“SHE is a girl Steve. I know she told you she was Transgender.” Tony had backed off, gauntlets still raised in warning.

“I don’t care what they call themselves these days; we had those cross-dressers during my time too. It was unnatural then and it is still unnatural now.”

“Steve, you know gay and bi people were also considered unnatural back then. Things are different these days; our marriage is proof enough of that!”

“It is different though. We can’t help loving each other; people can’t help who they are attracted to.” Steve had taken on the softly authoritative tone that really annoyed Tony some times. He spoke as if he was speaking to a child that did not quite ‘get things’ yet but soon would see reason.

“People cannot help who they are, whether that is sexual orientation or gender. It is not so black and white Steve.” Tony was exhausted. How to explain this to someone so set in their ways?

“That guy could be spying on us, and using Peter to do so!”

“Not everything is about you or me for that matter!” Tony threw up his hands in frustration.

“I have a full history on this – _Marcus_ ­– and I will find out what he wants from us.” Steve looked manic, and was not listening to Tony at all.

“HER NAME IS MJ!” His husband roared. Steve reeled back, shocked at the sudden raise in volume.

“I suggest you have a good long look into gender politics nowadays and reconsider what you are doing. If you want to make sure Peter never talks to you again then you are going about it the right way.”

“Peter will understand, I would rather he hate me now than be broken when he finds out he is being used.” Steve defended.

“What makes you so sure this is about us, and not simply a normal relationship?”

“This is not normal! He is lying to Peter about everything – his name, gender, and now this arrest. He tried to steal drugs Tony! Be reasonable!”

“Steve. Peter knew. He knew MJ’s birth name, her assigned gender and the arrest. So did I as a matter of fact.”

The revelation floored Steve. “Why did he not tell me then? Why you?” A stab of jealousy struck the soldier at the thought of Tony being their son’s confidant. He always was the cooler parent it felt, but Peter had never hesitated to talk to him about anything.

“Are you seriously asking me that? After how you have just reacted?” Tony laughed mockingly. “You have proved every one of Peter’s fears to be real, and now have attacked his girlfriend in our home.”

“He just needs to understand. Sometimes parenting is about making tough decisions Tony.” Once more Steve tried to bring down the intensity of the argument and make his husband see his point of view.

“This is not parenting Steve, it is bigotry. Do not think for one second I will be defending you or your actions to Peter. He is not the only one who you are pushing away.”

“What – Tony – “

“I need to be away from you for a while. This is – not alright.” Tony shook his head ruefully, shocking Steve with the sight of tears in his eyes. “Do not to track Peter or me down; you know that SHIELD is no match for me so it will be a waste of resources to even try.” Tony’s faceplate lowered once more, hiding his anguished face behind the cold mask of Iron Man.

“Do some research Captain. From multiple sources, not just Fox News. See who agrees with you, and then look into what else they believe.” The robotic voice was formal and nothing resembling Steve’s husband.

“Tony, this is ridiculous! Please, listen to me!” Steve begged, reaching for the suit.

“No. Leave all of us alone. If you do anything else to hurt that girl then know that our marriage is over. Think long and hard about what is more important to you.” With that, Tony was off and flying out of the window that Peter had so recently left through.

Steve was alone in the living room, his pile of papers on MJ scattered on the floor below him. With a heavy sigh he gathered them together in a neat pile once more and took them over to the couch. He sat heavily, and began reading. He would get to the bottom of this situation for both his son and his husband’s sake, even if they were blind to the danger they were in.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Continued misgendering and transphobia in this chapter.

The problem with SHIELD’s files was that while they were thorough and detailed, there was no context for what Steve was reading. He could see names and dates, Marcus’ birth certificate as well as psychologist and psychiatrist appointments but no background on his motivations. The recent felony was for attempted robbery but the pharmacist who he targeted was lenient and did not want to push for charges. 

With a grunt of frustration Steve threw the file onto the floor. He had poured over every word inside for hours, half expecting his husband and son to walk back into the tower at any time. He felt a building resentment towards Marcus and how he had already split their family. “JARVIS, can you tell me where Peter is?” He asked. Enough was enough, he needed to talk with his son face to face and make him understand his concerns.

“I cannot Mr Rogers.” The robotic voice responded.  
“We’ve talked about this, call me Steve.” The soldier frowned. “And what do you mean you can’t, have you been hacked?” A cold spike of panic shot down his spine at the thought of someone invading his family’s home in such a way.  
“I have not Mr Rogers. I am following orders by both Tony and Peter. They are both adamant that they do not wish to be found by you.” There was a definite tone of judgement in the AI’s voice now.  
“You can go against commands if they are not in their best interest though!” Steve said desperately. “I am trying to keep everyone safe.”  
“Mr Rogers, I suggest you follow the advice Sir gave you and research the topic before going any further. I can bring up some helpful resources to begin with.” Holograms of information began to appear but Steve wove them away.

“I am so sick of having to ‘catch up’ with events! I will find out what Marcus’ plans are myself and you will have to tell me where my family is because there is something going on. People do not pretend to be women, it is not normal!” Steve was shouting now, but got nothing but silence from the AI in response. Fine, so be it. He straightened his back and grit his teeth. He was a soldier, and he would do what was needed to protect his family.

Rigid determination fuelled Steve and allowed him to go directly to MJ’s parents’ house without second guessing himself. People who knew the kid would tell him more than SHIELD files and he just hopes they would be receptive to him. Taking a moment to steady himself, he knocked firmly on the door to their brownstone. It was not long before the door opened to reveal a woman who looked to be in her fourties, the curiousity on her face quickly being replaced by wonder as she recognised him.

“Captain? For what do we owe this pleasure?” A quick glance behind her revealed a man also standing, looking perplexed. Steve put on his best Captain smile.  
“I am sorry for intruding Ma’am but this is about your son.” He did not miss the way their expressions faltered at that, but they quickly invited him inside and led him to their living room.  
“Would you like a tea or a coffee?” Mrs Jones asked quickly, getting a no from Steve in response.

They sat down on the couches, Steve sitting opposite the two. He was considering the best way to approach this when Mr Jones spoke first. “What has Marcus done Captain Rogers?” The man said with a tone of worry in his voice.  
“Please, call me Steve.” He corrected automatically.  
“Only if you call us Margaret and Leonard.” Margaret smiled kindly at him, the tense feeling in the room dissipating a little at her words.  
“Up until today I only knew Marcus as MJ, she – he – was dating my son Peter.” The couple stiffened at his words and exchanged glances. Steve powered on, “I found out today that sh- he was arrested for attempting to steal from a pharmacy. I admit that I reacted badly, I worried that he deceived my son into a relationship and this crime makes me more concerned about his presence in my son’s life. As his parents I thought you could give me a better perspective.” He kept any judgement out of his voice as he spoke, hoping to convey that this was simply a meeting of one concerned parent to another.

“We are so sorry for any mess he has put you in.” Margaret said quickly. “I can’t believe that he would do this.” She shook her head and looked down at her linked hands. “We have let this go too far. We thought that if we indulged him then he would realise that this was a phase and get over it but recently he mentioned surgery and it was all too much. We had to cut him off.” Steve felt confused at her words.

“What do you mean by phase?” This time Leonard answered.  
“Since he was young Marcus was always more feminine, and interested in women’s clothes. Years ago he told us that he felt like he was truly a woman and wanted to ‘transition’ – that he was transgender. He asked us to call him Michelle but that was too much so we settled on MJ. He started wearing female clothes and growing his hair out and eventually took hormones as well.” The man took a deep breath.

“We sent him to specialists first; we were convinced it was the wrong thing and that he was just confused. All of them said that denying him this would cause more problems or make him hate us. So we allowed it. A week ago he announced that he was going to start surgically changing to further his transition and that was… too far. We took away his hormones and froze his bank accounts to prevent him from getting more. We had to put our foot down before we lost our son for good.”

“If we had known that he was doing this just so he could be in such a disgusting relationship we never would have let it get that far.” Leonard spat out the words.  
“The relationship alone is not the problem, but the deception and motives for it are what I have an issue with.” Steve quickly clarified; obviously he was in no position to mind his son dating a boy. That was what frustrated him most. If MJ had been a boy he would have approved wholeheartedly, but this felt too much like a lie. Combined with the felony it was adding up to be suspicious.

But his parents do not seem to think there was a much deeper motive behind him dating Peter. A small voice spoke to him.   
“No. Marcus knew we would never approve of such a relationship. This… transgender situation was bad but at least if we kept the truth quiet it did not reflect badly on us. Being in a public relationship with another man is a different thing, and we cannot approve of that.” Margaret shook her head. Steve was struggling to wrap his head around the contradictions he was hearing. This conversation was not helping make anything clearer for him.

“Don’t think poorly of us for allowing this to happen. We followed child psychology experts and their advice but we did not expect such deviance from our son.” Leonard’s face was flushed red from anger and embarrassment. Steve winced at the familiar phrases.  
“I think I need to go, I am sorry for burdening you with this.”  
“No apologies needed Captain Rogers, we are glad you told us the truth.” Margaret said fervently. Steve smiled woodenly back at her and headed to the exit as quickly as possible without appearing rude.

Once outside he all but ran away from the Brownstone, the conversation on repeat in his head. A slow churning in his gut made him feel a sense of dread. He thought he was doing the right thing but he was more confused than ever before. It was a long walk home to the empty tower suites, but the dread stayed with him the entire way.


End file.
